Domestic Violence Walk, Vigil To Return In Melrose

MELROSE, MA — A long-running walk and vigil honoring victims of domestic violence homicide will return to Melrose later this month at Melrose Veterans Memorial Middle School.

The Melrose Alliance Against Violence is organizing the event, which will mark its 27th year this year.

The event is set for Sunday, Oct. 23 at 4 p.m. It will be centered around the theme – “We Have a Choice. Let’s Use Our Voice.”

Now a matter of weeks away, community members can contribute immediately to a community voices project planned in tandem with the walk and vigil. The project calls for community members to submit their thoughts via audio or text in response to the following questions:

• How can we use our voice?
• What does it mean to use our voice?
• What inspires us to use our voice?

Interested community members can send their audio recordings or written responses by email to info@maav.org.

Responses will be displayed in physical word bubbles on the day of the walk and vigil.

“We look forward to showing off our community’s beautiful voices at the walk,” organizers wrote in a recent event announcement. “It truly shows that we all have the choice to use our voices to promote positive change in the Melrose community.”

The Melrose Alliance Against Violence traces its history back to 1995, running programs aimed at curbing bullying, teen dating abuse, domestic violence and sexual assault over nearly 30 years since its founding.

The organization's walk and vigil simultaneously serves as a fundraising initiative and an awareness push, looking to raise awareness about domestic violence while honoring abuse victims.

The walk will begin and end at Melrose Veterans Memorial Middle School, passing along the Lynn Fells Parkway, past Ell Pond, though downtown Melrose, past the Beebe Estate and back toward the Lynn Fells Parkway. Officials will be on hand to help walkers cross busy streets.

See options to sponsor the walk and/or make donations here. Anyone interested in participating in the walk should call the alliance against violence at 781-662-2010.

Plans this month will coincide with Domestic Violence Awareness, which is taking place throughout October.